YASSSSSSS i'm really digging some of them a LOT...and some are actually now starting to gain a little value & become a hot little item all their own! they totally have me geeked out on all these franchises that never had action figures before, especially the 80's films i grew up with.

my newest (not really new, just recently started getting into them more) obsession are these tiny Japanese toy bears called Bearbricks or Be@rbricks (also sometimes called Kubricks though they're actually a whole different figure line). for me, the enjoyment comes in a simplicity that's combined with some truly brilliant designs the artists come up with. they make Be@rbricks for all different fandoms, franchises, and events, so the fun is seeing how they solve the design and marveling in the often clever ways they incorporate certain designs and characters to the little bear form. The tiniest detail gives me smiles. For example, there's of course bears for Batman, and i get a kick out of how the ears are clear so that just the pointed tips of the cowl show.

as with a lot of small Japanese toys, they come in "blind" boxes so you don't know which one you will get unless you buy from a dealer who opens them first. there are about 10-12 different bear designs per series, and 31 series so far in the past 15 years (so approximately 2 per year), so there tons to collect. each design has a different run, thus, some are more rare than others and valued accordingly (think trading cards). and if that's not enough, there are hidden chase figures in each series, plus special bears released for various events, holidays, artists, etc. it's pretty endless!!

Be@rbricks have been around since 2001, so they've become quite a collector's item with some of the more rare figures going for hundreds of dollars. they are only 2.5" tall, known as the 100%...there are also the much smaller 50% & 70% sizes. the coolest however are the 400% size...HUGE Be@rbricks that alone fetch hundreds and some are even valued in the THOUSANDS due to their rarity. i only have one of those and I was SUPER LUCKY to get it at the price i did! of course, it's LOST related.

this is the top of a dresser in my office. it's an always-evolving happy place for me. so many things are represented here! there's: Battlestar Galactica, Indiana Jones, Blackstar, Doctor Who, Star Wars, Godzilla, Fringe, Batman, Where the Wild Things Are, How to Train Your Dragon, Alien, Disney, The Muppets, and even The Get Along Gang...lol...

I recognize those baby-shit brown colored weapons anywhere. they were the TMNT weapons of the original action figures. the bow is Splinter's, the sword Leo's, I forget who had the curvey blade things and the thing that looks like a pizza was Raph's sai! Id recognize them anywhere!!!

Rivoc wrote:I recognize those baby-shit brown colored weapons anywhere. they were the TMNT weapons of the original action figures. the bow is Splinter's, the sword Leo's, I forget who had the curvey blade things and the thing that looks like a pizza was Raph's sai! Id recognize them anywhere!!!

dude i know...i was a little disappointed to find out they were NOT for Thundercats. so i'll be putting the TMNT weapons up as a lot on eBay...maybe make a tiny bit back that was spent on that lot.

ink wrote:do i spy some get-along-gang in there..? thats awesome

haha yup...i couldn't resist. dug down from the bottom of a box of random toys was this little baggie filled with baby muppets, disney, and Get Along Gang figures. hadn't thought of that cartoon since it was on when i was a kid. 50 cents, no hesitation...

well, i had to get a couple more single figures to fill out the lot, but i now have pretty much ALL of the "main" Thundercats figures except for the little PVC Snarf. im having trouble finding one in good shape after all these years..and at an affordable price. just 3 or 4 Thundercats figures can sometimes fetch close to $100. so even though i won them at much less than they normally sell for, that lot was a special spurge i only get a couple times a year. most of the time i collect on a budget or trade, and have amazing auction strategies.

makes me so happy. i love these figures so much...love their design, how they're made, how they feel to hold. i never had them myself as a kid but i was OBSESSED with the cartoon and used to draw the characters...even made up my own. so this collection is very special to me. now i will slowly work to complete each one with their weapons and accessories. gonna take awhile, but then the HUNT is half the fun, too!

this is the top shelf...representing vintage Gremlins, Smurfs, Jetsons, Disney, and various old-time toys i've found over the years.

the only other one of the "main" characters that i needed is a guy named Hachiman. literally THE DAY i was going to grab one from eBay for about $15, my husband comes home from Goodwill with a surprise. believe it or not he just happened to pick the day when there was a Hachiman figure on the shelves for $1! so now my collection is complete except for the REALLY rare & expensive figures...Mongor, Lynx-O, Jarra, Pumyra (the only other female Thundercat!), and the Robo-Berbils...the robotic teddy-bears who had their own planet...lol.

I recognize those baby-shit brown colored weapons anywhere. they were the TMNT weapons of the original action figures. the bow is Splinter's, the sword Leo's, I forget who had the curvey blade things and the thing that looks like a pizza was Raph's sai! Id recognize them anywhere!!!

dude i am SO happy you popped in here and recognized those weapons because i would've likely had no idea otherwise and just let them sit in a drawer somewhere.

I recognize those baby-shit brown colored weapons anywhere. they were the TMNT weapons of the original action figures. the bow is Splinter's, the sword Leo's, I forget who had the curvey blade things and the thing that looks like a pizza was Raph's sai! Id recognize them anywhere!!!

dude i am SO happy you popped in here and recognized those weapons because i would've likely had no idea otherwise and just let them sit in a drawer somewhere.

the Close Encounters figure is almost like a unicorn, and the super-vintage Bond figure is an error....if you look closely it's supposed to be Moneypenny!

yup, they made Pee Wee figures! the Dune stuff is super-special...unfortunately the Feyd figure's card got damaged and the bubble came off, taking about $100 in value down to about $20. also notice his accessory - the torture cat... and this is one of the crown jewels, not only because it is in such wonderful shape, but because we bought it from the toy's designer! yup, the lady who adapted the film's worm into the toy kept it for all these years after she left LJN, along with photos of the prototype and sketches in her portfolio. we ended up with the photos and a lovely letter authenticating the whole package.

just so you understand i am not rolling in $, i wait for and find REEEEEEALLY good deals for the most part. as an example of how fast things get flipped, about 90% of the Star Wars stuff amassed (including most shown since the start of this thread) has been sold to literally help pay the rent. it's a constant cycle of purchasing, collecting, and selling. only super special stuff is held back, and even then things have to say goodbye depending on financial life. but it's a hella-fun hobby-turned-business and love every second of it!

oh my gosh yes. but i've been in the "game" long enough to know that it is cliche' but true that good things come to those who wait. also garage sales and thrift stores are great resources, if only to find stuff to buy and immediately flip for profit...so then we can buy up something for the collections. it's often just a little at a time...buying a toy for 25 cents and reselling it for $10-20 is the usual turnaround for most things but it adds up!

i just rearranged my Happy Shelf, too:

Blackstar collection - my husband surprised me recently with a piece i'd been dying to get, John Blackstar's dragon, Warlock!!! (i think i love him more than He-Man's Battlecat...)

ink wrote:ooh wow! that dragon took me back. that was a good toy, had a lot of great adventures, with them big ol wings lol

I love that his name is Warock, too! yeah man, i'm sooooo lucky to have one now. he's one of the prizes in my collection. plus, his wings still work great! often you find them with one wing that doesn't stay up, or a broken joint or one wing that is totally separated. there's also a variation that came out later with yellow wings. i want him, too.

you know Santa brought me some new toys for Christmas. in fact, that's all i got...hehehe.photos coming soon!

now, these are not from the holidays, but i'm a huge fan of The Dark Crystal and have been waiting all my life for true action figures (aside from my giant figure sculptures like my Jen). once upon a time, Kenner was actually going to come out with a line and went so far as to create the concepts and prototypes. well, Funko's side-company ReAction not only decided to make some new ones, but they used Kenner's original designs! found some super-cheap, bought a bunch, flipped them on eBay for ridiculous profit, and funded a good start to a collection of our own!

so then the holidays brought more fun stuff to add to the vintage end of things

we have this crazy fun vehicle, the Spice Scout from Dune (which we already have a growing collection of) which is hard to come by but the fella used some wicked bidding skills to get at a fraction of its real value:

and THIS...this game gave me so much pleasure as a kid. i drove my folks nuts trying to make them play it with me, but you can also play by yourself, which is what you do as an only-child lol. it also introduced me to the general concepts of Dungeons & Dragons (it's made by the same company). because yes, i'm THAT nerdy. it's very hard to find these days, and i've been searching for one that has most of its pieces as well. i'm so tickled to have this major part of my childhood!!!